Studies conducted during the last few years have brought a great change in our understanding of the role that RNA molecules play in the biological systems. They do not only take part in the protein synthesis or serve as adaptors translating information encoded in nucleotide sequences but also are involved in regulation of geneexpression. Most of them are produced from the larger molecules due to enzyme processing or spontaneous degradation and play a crucial role in the cellular processes.

In our laboratory, we work on the problem of a degradation of RNA molecules. In the studies we use the artificial RNA molecules, which were designed in such a way that they should be unstable, according to the rules developed by Kierzek and co-workers. On the basis of the results of their degradation we identify the regions of RNA molecules which are weak and the most susceptible to the cleavage. We have also proposed a formulation of a new problem, called RNA Partial Degradation Problem (RNA PDP) and the algorithm that allows to reconstruct the cleavage sites of the given RNA molecule.